Court Ruling Frees Tobacco Funds

State Plans To Start Its Anti-smoking Campaign For Kids

After five months of legal wrangling, it appeared late Friday that the state was finally going to receive tobacco money needed to launch a $200 million anti-smoking campaign aimed at children.

The 4th District Court of Appeals lifted a stay on Friday that had kept the first $57 million of the money in an escrow account and out of state hands. The tobacco industry said it would appeal the ruling, but state officials anticipate that the money will be transferred to state bank accounts by Monday.

The money is part of $750 million in tobacco payments that are stuck in an escrow account while portions of the settlement are disputed. It will go toward a $200 million anti-smoking campaign heralded by Gov. Lawton Chiles as one of the primary achievements of the settlement.

While the ruling was good news to the state, it was too late to save long-laid plans for a four-day summit that was scheduled to begin Feb. 15 in Central Florida.

That delay was especially disappointing for the summit's guests: almost 600 middle and high school students from across the state who have been drafted to help the governor craft an unprecedented campaign to curb smoking among children.

About 400 students from 49 counties had already signed on for the event, which would have officially kicked off the anti-smoking program with speakers, seminars and group discussions.

``It was too late for us. We couldn't hold the hotel rooms,'' said Peter Mitchell, spokesman for the state's tobacco pilot program.

Barring any new financial delays, Mitchell said, the $500,000 kick-off celebration will be rescheduled for March.

But tobacco industry attorneys have told the state they plan to appeal the decision by the 4th District Court of Appeal in West Palm Beach.

Industry officials say they want the money safeguarded until they iron out an apparent wrinkle in the September settlement agreement that leaves the pact open to appellate challenges.

By late Friday, tobacco attorneys were still talking to state officials about smoothing out the problem through compromise.